Carol Thompson Contact Reporter
Of The Morning Call
September 14, 2018 10:40 a.m.
Moravian College students who aspire to be lawyers can save themselves a year in the classroom thanks to a newly announced partnership between the college and Rutgers Law School.
Starting this year, qualified Moravian students can attend Rutgers Law School after their junior year, allowing them to complete both their bachelor鈥檚 and Juris Doctor degrees in six years instead of seven. To earn their Juris Doctor, students will have to complete 84 course credits of law classes, the same as is required of students in traditional programs.
鈥淚t gives us the opportunity to work more closely with Rutgers and guide our students into considering career options they might not have thought of otherwise,鈥 said Uppinder Mehan, Moravian dean of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
The partnership, announced Friday, is much like the early admission programs Rutgers Law School has with Rutgers University and Rowan University, said Michael Cahill, co-dean of Rutgers Law School in Camden, N.J.
"It seems that a lot of students develop an interest in law school during their undergraduate years."
鈥 Michael Cahill
Such programs, known as 3+3 Early Admission Programs, help Rutgers Law School reach out to students who don鈥檛 attend schools with law programs on campus, he said.
鈥淚t seems that a lot of students develop an interest in law school during their undergraduate years, and that鈥檚 more likely to happen if there鈥檚 a buzz around the idea of law school on the campus,鈥 Cahill said.
For years, Moravian has offered a pre-law club to allow students interested in law the opportunity to work with a faculty member who could help them select relevant courses and connect with law schools. The new partnership is the college鈥檚 鈥渘atural next step鈥 after the club, Mehan said.
There is no limit to the number of students who can participate in the early admission program. To qualify, Moravian students will have to maintain at least a 3.40 GPA and do well enough on the Law School Aptitude Test to meet the current Rutgers class鈥 median score.
Entrance to the 3+3 program won鈥檛 be based solely on grades and test scores, Cahill said. Admissions experts will be looking for students who are prepared for the fast-paced program and confident they want to skip a year of undergraduate studies in order to earn their law degrees faster.
鈥淚t's really for people who are dedicated to a certain professional path and know they want to get there,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 certainly not necessarily the option that everyone should pursue and that鈥檚 one reason that we want to be sure that the people who apply are interested in, very qualified and ready for law school.鈥
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